The Health Service Executive has confirmed it has screened a number of people who came in contact with a person who had contracted pulmonary TB but that no active case was identified.
According to the HSE, its public health department was alerted in mid-November to a shopworker in Carrigaline, Co Cork, who was suffering from pulmonary TB and it then attempted to identify anyone who may have come into contact with the person.
“This involved an initial round of screening involving household and close contacts including contacts who worked with the person during the period when they may potentially have been exposed,” said the HSE.
The screening was carried out in late November/beginning December involving skin and blood tests but no active case of TB was identified in any of those screened.
Bacteria
Several cases of latent TB were identified involving people who did not have active disease but may have been infected with the bacteria in their system and they have been offered preventative treatment, said the HSE.
The treatment involves the use of antibiotics for a number of months to prevent the likelihood of them developing active TB in the future with the risk generally seen as being between 5 per cent and 10 per cent over the course of their lifetime.
Any person who did not want antibiotic preventive treatment has been offered chest X-ray follow-up for a year to rule out their going on to develop active disease as the risk is highest in first year, said the HSE.
A second round of screening is planned for mid January, eight weeks from last contact with the index case, and an information leaflet was given to all staff said the HSE, adding that customers were not at risk as the contact time would be insufficient to place them at risk.
